of families and monsters
by siuntist
Summary: Ace and Sabo were the best thing that happened to Luffy when he was a kid. They gave him a home. He was sure that nothing would ever break their bond. But lately Luffy's starting to think that he doesn't deserve to be with them anymore. (Or, hero AU in which a villain uses his powers to control Ace and Sabo and decides to mess with Luffy when no one's looking)
1. Chapter 1

**Summary** : Ace and Sabo were the best thing that happened to Luffy when he was a kid, besides Shanks. His brothers gave him a family, a home, a place where he belongs. They played and trained and took care of each other. He was sure that nothing would ever break their bond.

But lately Luffy's starting to think that he doesn't deserve to be with them anymore.

(Or, hero AU in which a villain uses his powers to control Ace and Sabo and decides to mess with Luffy when no one's looking).

* * *

 **A/N** : This is an One Piece fic set in a superhero AU. It's similar to the worldbuilding in Boku no Hero Academia, in which being a hero is a job and there are agencies and schools and media about them. I believe it's general enough that you don't need to know anything about BNHA, but if you don't understand anything, feel free to ask! I'll gladly explain/edit to make it easier to get.

Also, Sabo and Ace both have fire powers.

Trigger warning for sibling abuse.

* * *

Luffy wasn't sure of when it started. Everything happened so gradually, so slowly - he couldn't tell when it started getting out of hand.

One day he and Ace were fine, joking and playing video games and eating, when Luffy accidentally dropped his glass of soda. Being the disaster that he is, he also dropped the bag of popcorn in his attempt to prevent the glass from falling. He looked at Ace, ready to apologize, but his brother beat him to it.

"Jesus, you can't do anything right, huh?" the older one said. Luffy laughed and scratched his head.

"My bad, Ace," he replied, ignoring the disappointment in his brother's voice. That wasn't the first time Luffy had done something like that, Ace surely was used to it by now. Besides, it was just a stupid glass, who cared about it?

Except that situations like that kept happening. Luffy would accidentally wash white clothes with colorful ones or would accidentally forget something in the oven, and his brothers would get pissed. Sabo too started making similar comments - 'fuck, Luffy, how many times do I have to tell you to be careful!' and 'these cost money, you know!' and 'god damn it, not again!"

Luffy was sure that his brothers were just having a difficult week or were stressed from fighting villains. He wasn't so weak to cry from dumb comments like that, he got over that when he was a kid, and he knew the useless part wasn't true anyway.

But after a while he started to question himself.

* * *

"Sabo! Check out my new attack!" shouted Luffy, from across the camp. They were at a training facility at Luffy's school. Since Ace and Sabo used to study there, they had permission to use the gym and camp to practice.

Luffy stretched his arms behind him, preparing himself to launch his arms towards the sky. His limbs extended several meters before returning to their natural state.

"What do you think? Cool, right? It's like a bazooka!"

His brother didn't say anything for a while. Then, he sighed. "It's okay to admit your power isn't cool, Luffy. I would be embarassed too if I were you."

"What?"

"Nothing, nothing. You wouldn't understand anyway."

* * *

Luffy noticed Ace seemed on edge lately. He kept playing with his necklace and furrowing his brow while he read something on his laptop.

"Hey, Ace," Luffy said, catching his attention, "can we go to the mall? I feel like eating some junk food."

"No."

"Please?" Luffy pouted, making his best adorable face.

His brother seemed displeased at that. "God, here I am thinking about how we're going to pay the bills this month, and you can only think about food. I can't believe how selfish you are."

The younger boy didn't know how to reply to that. "Uh, sorry? I didn't know we were short on cash."

"Of course you don't. You don't even know how much rent costs."

"You don't have to be an ass about it. I already apologized."

"Yeah, yeah. If you want money you better get a job. It's time for you to stop being so dependent on us. Though considering you break everything you touch, I doubt someone would hire you."

* * *

Sabo was pissed. Luffy could notice that by the way he was sitting, all rigid and tense, looking at important papers from his hero agency. His eye twitched every few seconds and he often mumbled something in frustration.

Luffy thought that was the perfect moment to play a prank. It never failed to piss off Sabo even more, but after a while he would laugh like it was the most hilarious thing he had ever seen. It always helped them relax a bit.

When Sabo got up to go the bathroom, Luffy quickly attached an airhorn to the base of the seat with adhesive tape. After the blond hero returned, he sat down at the chair - and got up fast when the seat made a loud, obnoxious sound. Sabo almost fell down, looking alarmed. Luffy immediately started laughing, and was about to make fun of his brother, when he noticed the blond got up, his eyes shining with rage. The dark haired boy didn't have time to protect himself when Sabo hit his upper arm with his power activated, and Luffy hissed when he felt his skin burn with his brother's fire. Okay, maybe the prank was a bit too much, Sabo was on edge and reacted by instinct, he didn't mean to do that-

Sabo interrupted the dark haired boy's thoughts by slapping his face, hard. Luffy felt back, astonished. It didn't hurt because his body was rubber, but Sabo had never hit him on purpose before. Not like that.

"Are you stupid? Do you think I'm one of your dumb friends? Don't pull that shit on me ever again. Some of us have to work here and get money so we don't starve because you ate all the food," the blond said, his voice dripping with venom. He removed the airhorn with violence and sat again, returning his attention to the paperwork and leaving an astonished Luffy on the floor.

* * *

Luffy got home, feeling annoyed. Usually he wouldn't care about failing another subject at school, but lately his brothers had been very impatient with him, and he wasn't in the mood for arguing.

Ace, being his legal guardian, had already received the news from the school and was sitting on the sofa. Luffy gave him his report card, with all his terrible grades, and waited for the mocking to start.

"Huh. I wasn't expecting much from you anyway."

Somehow that hurt more than being called an idiot.

* * *

One day, Ace, Sabo and Luffy went to the beach.

It started well enough; both of his brothers seemed in a good mood, pleased with the good weather and happy that they took a break for once. Sabo even bought Luffy some ice cream - Luffy thought that was his way of apologizing, and smiled brightly in reply to show him that everything was okay.

At some point Ace decided to go swimming, and called his brothers cowards for not going with him, so of course Sabo and Luffy felt challenged and went as well. The sea was warm and pleasant, perfect for a swim. The older brothers started trying to drown each other, their laughter loud and joyful. The younger one watched, not really wanting to participate.

But suddenly they attacked Luffy, purposefully drowning him, and the boy kicked and thrashed around in desperation. They knew he didn't know how to swim very well. They knew one of the only things he was terrified of was being underwater for long. Why were they doing this?

When they finally let go, Luffy was really annoyed. "That was mean and unnecessary," he grumbled.

"You're such a crybaby. We're only messing with you," the freckled boy said. Luffy didn't reply.

* * *

Luffy often trained with his brothers. They were heroes after all, they had to train a lot to be able to protect civilians.

Therefore he and Ace decided to spar, and the younger boy was pretty confident that this time he'd kick his brother's ass.

Except that Ace was very determined to show his younger brother that he still had much to learn. Ace quickly knocked Luffy down, before he even knew the fight had started, and started hitting him. Luffy didn't know how many times Ace punched and kicked him. In his stomach, in the face, in the leg - it felt like he was there forever, feeling his skin get burned every time the fire touched his body. Not matter how much he dodged and jumped and ran, Ace seemed to always catch him in the end.

"See? This is why we say you're weak. You can't even fight back! You're completely on the defensive," Ace sneered.

"That's not true! I'm just trying to find an opening!" the younger boy replied, frustrated with the smoke and the flames that seemed to taunt him.

"Yeah, right. I feel sorry for Rayleigh, having to train a useless hero like you." The freckled boy kept mocking him, easily avoiding any attacks from his brother.

When they finally took a break, Ace was smiling, saying that it was relaxing to be able to let it go like that. Luffy had never felt more stressed in his life.

* * *

"Oi, Luffy, did you fight any villains yesterday?" Usopp asked from across the table. They were on their break and had just picked up their lunch, chatting as usual.

"Hm? Not really, we only did some patrol. Why?" Luffy replied, bitting a piece of his sandwich. During the afternoon Luffy was a intern at Rayleigh's hero agency.

"Oh, I thought you had an exciting fight. You have some bruises on your leg and on your face that look worse than the usual ones you get at training," said Nami, eating her omelette.

The shorter boy felt a stomach tighten at that. He remembered how he and Sabo were sparring like always, the typical training they always did together, when the blond boy had decided to test a new technique. He engulfed Luffy in fire, trapping him in a circle, and started making fireballs that followed the younger boy. Luffy tried, but the flames always found him, and he couldn't stay away. Meanwhile, Sabo only laughed, watching Luffy get burned.

The dark haired boy didn't react. He had no idea of what happened. He knew his brother was superior in power, but he also never had his ass kicked like that. Worse of all, he felt sick and he couldn't stop shaking when his brother was near him, and he didn't know why.

"Hey, shithead, we're talking to you," Sanji called, waving a hand in front of him, successfully snapping Luffy out of his thoughts.

"Oops, my bad. I was just training with Sabo yesterday, and he got too excited," he mentioned, feeling like the words weren't right. It wasn't exactly training, it was more like his brother using him as a punchbag. The way the older boy seemed to mock him like he was trash kept coming back to his thoughts, but Luffy tried to ignore it. He was sure that the blond was just trying to train him. At least one opponent in his life would do something like that in a fight, and he supposed he better get used to it.

"Really? Sabo seems so good at power management. I can't imagine him losing control," Nami wondered. "Did you do anything to piss him off? I'm sure living with you isn't exactly easy."

The boy felt cold hearing that. He knew he wasn't the best person to deal with. He was still in school and couldn't pay for his food or rent or textbooks. Ace and Sabo had guaranteed that they would help him with money so Luffy wouldn't need to work on top of pursuing a hero career. In other words, they had every right to complain when their younger brother broke something or annoyed them, right? He only had a home because of them. He owed them his life.

But why spend money helping someone that they considered so useless? Someone that they thought had a stupid power and wasn't smart enough and didn't do anything right? Luffy realized he didn't understand Ace and Sabo anymore, and even though he was surrounded by friends, he felt like he was seven years old again, lonely and without any family and sitting alone at home waiting for Gramps to come back from work.

"Hey, I'm joking! Your brothers love you, you know. We can see it in the way they treat you," Nami said smiling, suddenly compassionate.

'They love me, huh?' Luffy thought. For the first time since he was small, he wasn't sure anymore about that.

* * *

Luffy started suspecting something was wrong when his friends visited him.

Sanji brought snacks and Franky his Xbox so they could play Just Dance. Robin and Jinbe were sitting in the sofa, watching amused as Brook, Usopp, Chopper and Nami danced to Beyonce's Crazy In Love, while Luffy and Zoro laughed at their poor attempts.

"Are you okay?" Zoro asked the rubber boy.

"Yeah! Why?"

"Nothing. Robin mentioned you looked a bit down."

Luffy was surprised to hear that. The older woman was almost never wrong about things she noticed. But, truthfully, he didn't really know how he felt. The dark haired boy wasn't spending as much time at home as he used to. For some reason he kept feeling anxious whenever he saw his brothers, and he didn't want to annoy them again, so he thought it was best to stay longer at school.

A door opening interrupted his thoughts, and he turned to see Ace and Sabo entering the apartment. The older boys greeted the visitors and immediately offered them chocolate cake, which was received with cheers.

"Your brothers are so nice, Luffy! You're lucky to have them!" Chopper said, eating his piece with glee.

Luffy had to agree. They were nice, weren't them? Luffy should be grateful for everything they've done for him.

So why can't he stop feeling so uneasy around them?

* * *

 **A/N** : I've always wondered a lot about Luffy's canon confidence. He's always positive that he will get what he wants and that he's strong. Even when his brothers joke about his power being lame or useless, Luffy knows that's not true and he stands by it. Even when his brothers or crewmates or anybody else, really, say he's an idiot, he still never calls himself that. Even if an enemy is superior than him, he never calls himself not as strong as them. The only time (I think) he did call himself weak was when he failed to save his brother - in other words, he only considers himself weak because of a failed objective, not because people told him so.

As an abuse and bullying victim who was belittled and told to be useless, this was a complete foreign concept to me. Seeing my favourite character being so confident, so positive, was something that made me really emotional. So I wanted to try my hand at a fic where Luffy goes through a similar painful experience like I did, but was still able to overcome it with the help of his family and friends. In other words, some sort of vent fic.

I did some research on sibling abuse and abuse recovery to write this story, and added my own feelings as well. I really wanted to portray the hurt the victim feels when treated so harshly by family, and I hope I was able to transmit that.

Let me know what you think! :)


	2. Chapter 2

When Luffy saw a villain punch Ace in the face when they were going to the supermarket, the younger boy's first reaction was to stop completely, paralyzed with fear.

Not fear of the man; later, Luffy would realize it was fear of violence. Of being his turn to be hurt. The way he had been hurt several times in the last few months.

Nevertheless, his brother was still in danger, and he wasn't one to let his family be hit like that, so after recovering from his initial shock, Luffy tried to kick the guy.

The villain wore a black outfit, his face covered by a plague mask; surprisingly, he could generate water, the crystalline liquid making a weird contrast with his dark, somber look.

Even if his appearance didn't make sense, his intentions were clear; the villain quickly tried to unable Ace's powers, manipulating water and trying to extinguish his fire. Ace was holding on well, successfully landing some hits on the guy, when Luffy prepared an attack - the water user, understanding what the younger boy was going to do, shifted his position in order to make Ace receive the blow.

In the end, the villain ran away, succeeding in stealing Ace's and Luffy's wallet.

The freckled boy let out a frustrated yell, before holding Luffy by his shirt. "Why did you do that? I had everything under control! You can't do a single thing right! I lost all my money and now we can't buy anything! You little shit!"

Guilt bubbled up in Luffy's stomach. He knew that was true - Ace was strong, he didn't need his help. He never needed it before. The younger brother only ruined everything by trying to interfere.

* * *

Luffy was helping Sabo clean the apartment that day. He was excited, dancing around with a broom while singing a random pop song, when he accidentally hit the TV and it fell, breaking loudly.

Sabo was so furious that he went to Luffy's room and destroyed every single possession he touched - his phone, his notebooks, his uniform - while screaming about what an absolute failure Luffy was.

The younger boy didn't dare talk back to his brother. He won't. After last time he fucked up with Ace and the villain, he knew that would be too selfish of him.

* * *

Ace and Luffy were training at the camp that afternoon. His older brother has been trying to teach him a new move for several minutes now, and so far Luffy has missed and ended up on the floor four times.

The freckled boy sighed. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Luffy tried not to be bothered by that. "It's hard to do it because of my powers. Rubber makes it hard to dodge."

Ace sneers. "You're so slow. Admit it, not even a 10-year-old kid would be so bad at learning this. The only reason you're not even worse is because we bother to train with you."

Luffy gritted his teeth, got up, and tried to hit Ace again.

* * *

Luffy refuses some invitations from his friends to hang out. He needs to train. He tries to raise his power, tries to get stronger, tries to reach the expectation that Sabo and Ace have for him. That's what you do for people you care about, right? You try to pay back everything they've done for you. You try to compensate for everything they sacrificed for you.

He can't afford to be weak.

* * *

"You know, you are always training these days, bro. Is there a tournament coming that I don't know about?" Franky said, while he worked in his next project. The blue haired man was a specialist in developing support equipment that would help heroes out on the battlefield, like projectiles, weapons and others.

"No. I just need to get stronger," the dark haired boy replied.

"You also need to relax, Luffy-san." Brook replied. The old skeleton was sitting next to Franky, writing a new song.

"But I relax. I just need to train, too."

"Yeah, but you barely sleep. Zoro-san has said you're always at the training camp until late."

Luffy clenched his fists. "Brook. I know what I'm doing."

"Okay, then. It was just an observation."

* * *

One day, Robin came over to his apartment to deliver some books for Sabo. Luffy was always happy to see her, especially because it usually meant she would tell him a cool story. He started helping her bring the materials inside; there were a lot and they were quite heavy.

It had all gone well, until Luffy dropped a few dictionaries, and, as usual, Sabo got mad. And insulted him. And hit him in the face.

They were alone in his brother's room when that happened, but Luffy could swear that he saw a pair of blue, sharp eyes in the wall - however he blinked and suddenly they were gone.

* * *

The next day, Sanji invited Luffy to hang out at his house.

He thought it was weird at first. The blond never invited them to come to his place. He always said something about his dad being an ass. Luffy thought that his friend probably got too excited cooking new dishes and now he needed someone to eat them all. He was sure he was going to arrive there and find everyone from their usual group.

However, when he entered the house, only Robin was there, and there was no food. Sanji gestured for them to follow him, and they sat on the sofa in the living room. His blond friend offered them some orange juice.

"Luffy," the older woman said, her voice smooth like silk, "we've been wanting to talk to you for a while."

The dark haired boy looked around, confused with how serious they were being. "Is this because I ate your pudding last time we were at Zoro's house? I'm sorry, I'll buy one for you."

"No, it's not that, you idiot," the cook replied, lighting a cigarette. He kept playing with his lighter, hands sweaty and shaky. His shoulders were tense, and his voice was cautious. "It's just, uh, have your brothers been treating you differently lately?"

"Not really. They're just a bit grumpy about work and money, but that's all."

"Do they... Get violent about it?" Robin asked.

"What, like kicking my ass? Nope. Except when we're training, but that's the point of practicing with them."

Robin and Sanji exchanged a glance. Luffy had no idea of what was going on.

"Does Sabo always scream at you like he did yesterday?"

Luffy was surprised to hear that. "So you _were_ spying on us! I thought I had seen your eyes on the room."

"I know I shouldn't pry, Luffy, and I apologize for that, but I'm concerned. You've been shockingly obsessed with training lately, and you often look angry. Has this situation with Sabo been happening a lot?"

"Well, sometimes. But it's my fault, I should have been more careful with the books."

"It was an accident. You don't deserve to be yelled at for something like that. Or slapped."

"What do you mean?" The younger boy was truly baffled. "I was being an idiot, they're right to be angry. What's up with those weird questions?"

Sanji's shaking got worse. His face gave nothing away, but he was white like paper. "Luffy, do you know what abuse is?" the blond asked.

"It's, like, when someone hurts and calls the other person names, right? And then they get arrested by the police for being a dick."

"Yes. Isn't that what Sabo did to you?" Robin was perfectly calm, like this wasn't a messed up conversation at all. The dark haired boy was starting to get frustrated.

"But that was different! He had a reason. He and Ace always do."

The blond's voice got a bit colder after hearing that. "Does Ace hit you too?"

"Yeah, sometimes. But it's not their fault I always break things. Plus they're really good for me. I mean, they let me live in their apartment and help me with money and food and stuff."

Instantly, Sanji got up and left the room, steps firm. Luffy could hear him mumbling swear words.

"What's up with him?"

"I think it would be best if Sanji himself explained it."

"Okay."

It took the cook a few minutes, but eventually he returned to the room, looking a bit calmer. He took a deep breath. "Luffy," he started, "I've never told you this before, but when I was a kid, my piece of shit brothers used to gang up and hit me. They kicked and punched me every day just because I liked to cook. And my asshole father didn't do anything about it."

The younger boy felt sadness fill his heart. His friend was a good person and didn't deserve to be treated like that. "It's stupid that they don't like that you cook. I'm glad you found us though, we can be a family together! And I can kick your brothers' asses for you if you want."

Sanji couldn't contain a small smile at that. "Thank you, but you're missing the point," the older boy sighed, "the thing is, that was abuse. And I think that's what you're going through too."

"What? You're confusing things. Ace and Sabo only hit me when I deserve it, like when we're training."

 _"You never deserve to be fucking hit!"_ The blond yelled suddenly, making the dark haired boy jump in surprise. Robin shot him a sharp look, but didn't say anything. The cook ran a hand through his hair in exasperation, deflating his previous angry posture. "Sorry. I didn't mean to do that. But Luffy, you have to understand something. You don't have to deal with this kind of thing."

The younger boy was about to protest when the archeologist cut him to it. "I think what Sanji is trying to say is," she said, always the reasonable one in their group, "how do you feel when they hit you and scream at you?"

"I guess nervous? I don't want to lose to them."

"Do you feel fear when they're around you? Like you're always on edge, waiting for something to go wrong?"

Luffy had never really known how to put it into words, but it made perfect sense. "Yeah! How do you know that?"

"Do they 'discipline' you? Like being harsh during training?" The older woman was being strangely specific.

"Yeah. They're preparing me for when I'll be a hero. I've already told you, that's the point of training."

"And have you asked them to stop harassing you?"

"They're not doing that. You guys sure like repeating things."

"Okay, have you asked them to stop hitting you outside of training?"

"I'm not a crybaby."

Robin raised an eyebrow at that. "You're not being a crybaby just because you asked to be respected."

"Ace said only weaklings complain about that sort of thing. He says I should get used to it because villains will do the same thing."

Sanji interrupted the conversation by dropping the glass of juice he was holding, the material and the liquid flying in every direction on the floor. The blond had his fists tightly clenched, trembling, and his face was twisted in an ugly frown.

"I'm- I'm going to _kill_ these sons of a-"

"Sanji. Not now." Robin's disapproving face was more obvious after his words, her features slightly frustrated. She looked like the conversation wasn't going where she planned. "Luffy," the older woman said, "all of these things you're saying are abuse. As in, they are mentioned in guides about how to recognize when someone is being mistreated by family. And you're showing that in your behaviour."

"Huh? It's not like they're hurting me. My body is rubber, remember? And I'm sure Gramps would have hit me twice as much."

The archeologist opened her mouth to reply, but stopped to rethink her position. Instead, she abruptly got up and hugged him. Luffy wasn't expecting that - the older woman usually didn't initiate physical contact with their group. He didn't remember the last time Robin even gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"We're just worried. You'll talk to us if it gets worse, right? Promise me." The rubber boy had never heard his friend like that. She sounded so emotional, so upset. He wondered if it was his fault. He seemed to be bothering people a lot lately.

Smiling reassuringly, the dark haired boy finished the conversation. "C'mon Robin, don't cry. I'm fine. You guys really are overreacting."

* * *

 **A/N:** Oops. People are starting to notice.

This was very difficult to write because most researches focus on suicidal behaviour and alcoholism as ways to cope with abuse, and I can't see Luffy using those methods. He is mostly a carefree guy, so I think he wouldn't handle long exposure to stress very well, and would in return become constantly angry and focused on his objectives, which is why I made him obsessed with training - that's his way of becoming strong enough so he's confident that his brothers won't be able to hurt him. He's also self-loathing a bit, because his brothers keep showing him he's still weak compared to them, not to mention guilt tripping Luffy regarding money issues, and Luffy gets stressed about it. He knows that in fact he's pretty strong, but not being strong enough to prevent his brothers from hurting him makes him angry at himself. I hope this makes sense.

Sanji and Robin were picked because they're the only ones that were abused by family, therefore the ones who are most likely to understand how delicate the situation is. Part of me wanted to write protective Zoro, but I think Sanji needs more opportunities to show how much he cares about Luffy. Robin is probably the only one with enough emotional intelligence to deal with this without hitting someone.

 **Answering reviews:**

 **cynthiabarlow98** and **Guest:** thank you! I hope you liked the chapter. :)

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 **Wordlet:** thank you for your kind words! I'm really trying to keep Luffy in character as much as possible. Let me know if you think I messed up somewhere. Thank you for following and I hope you liked this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

After that weird talk, Luffy started to notice that he was never by himself for too long.

Zoro and Sanji refused to let him train alone. Nami constantly texted him to ask what he was doing. Robin offered to help him study for school tests. Chopper and Usopp often invited him to play video games. Franky and Brook would always ask his help with a new song or new weapon. Whenever he visited Sabo and Ace at work, Jinbe would be there, and he followed Luffy like a shadow.

He supposed it was nice, having friends that cared so much about him, but he didn't want to worry people for no reason. Everybody had their own problems. And it's not like what Sanji and Robin said was true anyways.

* * *

The most stressful part of being at home was not knowing when the fights and screaming and hits were going to start.

In one moment Ace and Sabo were apparently content and calm, but Luffy was always waiting for a disaster to happen, always waiting to piss them off accidentally. And when he inevitably annoyed them, he would always end up with a new burn or bruise or cut.

If he made his family so angry and frustrated, maybe Ace and Sabo would be better off without him. Maybe he should live with Gramps again. At least then his brothers wouldn't have to be so stressed all the time.

* * *

It was Sabo's birthday, and Luffy was happy that for once it didn't look like his brother was mad at him. He and Ace prepared a party with food and alcohol and loud music, and everybody seemed to be having fun.

At some point Luffy decided to give his brother his birthday gift - a new blue scarf with dragon patterns. Sabo was so happy with it that he hugged Luffy and drunkenly and loudly announced that he was the best little brother ever, while Hack took a picture of them.

Luffy truly missed being hugged by Sabo. The sudden affection made all questions and doubts evaporate from his head. He was so happy that he cried! Who knows, maybe everything would go back to normal soon.

* * *

Luffy got home earlier one day from his training with Rayleigh; it had been a calm afternoon, without any villain activity, and he was allowed to leave sooner.

After he entered the house, he was surprised to find Ace and a girl he didn't know lying on the sofa, both half naked and out of breath. The girl let out an indignant yelp, trying to cover herself with Ace's t-shirt, and Luffy immediately went to his room, pretending he didn't see anything.

He could hear bickering outside; the girl spoke in hushed tones, fuming, arguing with Ace that _they were supposed to be alone for the whole day_. Ace tried to calm her down, but minutes later she left the apartment.

After a while, he appeared at Luffy's door. "So, out of all days for you to show up earlier, it had to be today?"

"Sorry. I didn't know she'd be here."

"You're such an idiot, coming home earlier without letting me know. And I was about to get lucky, too. You ruined everything."

Luffy knew Ace didn't mean that. Sure, he and Sabo had been meaner lately, but they were still family. They wouldn't fight because of something so small. And to be honest, Luffy's friends were starting to get annoying - they were always asking weird questions, always looking weird at Ace and Sabo, always worrying about him. Luffy was strong, he didn't need that. He just needed to prove to them that his brothers were good people, and that they weren't fighting as much as Sanji and Robin thought, and everything would go back to normal.

So Luffy dared to talk back to Ace, for the first time in weeks. "I'm not an idiot. Ace's the stupid one, why did you invite the girl here if she wanted you two to be alone? Sabo and I live here too."

"What the fuck did you just call me, you piece of shit?"

Luffy felt a tingle of fear at the harsh words, but didn't back down. "You deaf? I said you were being stupid."

At first Ace only stared at him, apparently surprised at the unusual defiance. There it was - Ace may say cruel things sometimes, but he wouldn't hurt Luffy. Not in the way his friends thought he would, at least.

"You've got some nerve, saying shit like that to me."

Luffy had nothing to say in reply, so he simply walked away to go to the kitchen, when Ace abruptly knocked him down, a hand holding his throat firmly while another paused at his chest, fire activated.

"Hm? Not so brave now, are you? What, are you going to cry from a little burn?"

"Stop! That freaking hurts!" Luffy tried desperately to push Ace's hands, tried kicking him away, but his brother stayed firm, the fire making Luffy struggle and scream, _"Ace, please!_ "

His brother gave him a sadistic smile, one Luffy would never forget. He felt his heart beat so fast like he had run a marathon - oh god, he could smell burnt skin, jesus it hurts so much - his breathing was shallow, like he couldn't get enough oxygen in his lungs, and everything was spinning, the room beginning to blur around him as his eyes watered. He barely noticed when he fainted.

* * *

Luffy woke up in the hospital. He received a lecture from the doctor about not being careful when cooking and managing the oven's fire, and that he was lucky his brother found him so quickly. Luffy didn't understand why he was saying that, but people lately have been saying lots of things he's having trouble following.

His chest and hands were wrapped in bandages, and he felt pain when moving. The doctor said he'd have to stay in the hospital for four days, to make sure he wouldn't get an infection from the burns. The idea of not being able to train because of this stressed him out, but Luffy tried to ignore it.

And maybe it was time to recognize that something was indeed wrong. Ace and Sabo had never gone that far. Ace didn't even look like himself, grinning maniacally while Luffy tried to get away from him.

What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he protect himself? And why would his brother do something like that?

Luffy was starting to feel scared.

* * *

Nami was the first to show up when visiting hours started, and she was very persistent about Luffy going to her house after he was released from the hospital.

"I don't know, Nami. I have to help Sabo with work so we can buy a new TV."

"I'll lend you money to buy the damn thing if you need it. Just please come with me. I'll even ask Sanji-kun to make barbecue for you."

The promise of meat was a dirty trick, one that Luffy couldn't refuse. Well, after that incident he doubted Ace would want him anywhere near their apartment, at least for a while.

* * *

After settling in the guest room, Luffy looked around. The place was nicely decorated, as expected from Nami's family. Bellemere had left an orange cake for Luffy as a welcome gift. Zoro and Chopper had just arrived there to make sure Luffy had not worsened his wounds by trying to train - although Zoro wasn't in any position to lecture Luffy about that.

"Luffy," Nami said suddenly, showing up at the door and looking really annoyed, "we have some visitors. You can send them away if you want though." She was frowning, her face obviously displeased.

"Hm? Who is it?"

Nami gesticulated to outside the room and, after following her, Luffy was face to face with Koala and Marco. Both of them had been working with Ace and Sabo for a long time, and they were good friends.

"Hey there, guys. We're sorry to show up uninvited like this, yoi. Luffy, I hope you're recovering well. I heard about what happened."

"Yeah, yeah. Just get it over with," The girl replied, crossing her arms. She didn't look very happy having friends of Luffy's brothers in her house.

"Luffy, I'm here because I'm worried about Ace. He's not… been himself in the last few days. I was talking to Koala and she mentioned Sabo has also been acting weird lately. Do you know if something's happening with them? We want to help, yoi."

"Uh, they're really stressed about money. Sometimes they mention work, too."

"Are you guys in debt or something like that? I'm sorry for being so blunt, Luffy-kun, but I've never seen Sabo-kun act the way he's been doing. He's being really cold and angry. He's always been good at managing his emotions, something serious must be happening. And nothing major happened at work the whole month."

Luffy felt guilt creep its way into his body again. He had been feeling that a lot lately. "Ace says rent is getting too expensive. And I broke some stuff at home so we gotta pay for that too."

"That's not enough, I think. Ace even screamed at Pops last week. He hasn't done that since his first week in the agency, yoi. You sure there isn't anything else?"

Nami moved closer to Luffy, her posture challenging. "Look, he's already said what's going on. If you're going to keep pressuring him then I'll have to ask you to leave."

Koala raised her eyebrow. "I'm sorry? We're not pressuring anyone, Nami-san. It's not what we want to do at all."

"You are clearly focused on worrying about _abusers_ , and I'm not going to stand by and let you make Luffy feel bad. I expected better from heroes like you." Nami wasn't trying to hide her angry features anymore.

"What? Abusers? What do you mean, yoi?"

"Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about! You guys are practically married to Ace and Sabo. Surely you noticed what they've been doing."

"Oi, Nami! They aren't doing anything-"

Marco seemed genuinely surprised. "I'm… really not following. Who are they hurting exactly? And do you have any evidence of it?"

That seemed to be the wrong thing to say, as Nami flared her nostrils and raised her voice, her expression pure incredulity. " _Stop being so ridiculous!_ You know Ace's the one that put Luffy in the hospital! Sabo has been hitting him too! And you're not doing anything to prevent them from hurting him! You're just as bad as them!"

Koala stepped closer, looking as pissed as Nami. "Are you insane? Sabo-kun would never hurt his family! He cares about Luffy-kun more than he cares about himself-"

"BULLSHIT! Explain the burn marks in Luffy's skin then! Explain why everyday he looks like he's been hit by a train!"

Holy shit, was everybody around him going insane? Luffy felt a headache coming. He didn't want to hear this conversation again.

"Luffy-kun, that's not true, right? I've never seen Sabo-kun even yell at you once. He has been weird lately but I won't let people insult my friend, especially if he needs help. Please tell her that she's wrong."

The way Koala dismissed the idea like it was unthinkable completely threw Luffy out of the loop. She was right. Was Luffy imagining things? His brothers would never hurt him on purpose. He was the one who started the argument that time, after all. He felt disgusted with himself, thinking Sabo and Ace, who have always done so much for him, were somehow bullying him. What was he, a weak little kid?

Chopper got up from his seat, looking annoyed as well. "You don't have the right to tell Luffy to do anything for you-"

"I'm simply asking him to-"

"SHUT UP! I can't think with you all being so annoying!" Luffy was _so_ _frustrated_ , why is everybody acting so weird?

Nami instantly turned to him, her expression changing from angry to apologetic, but Chopper got there first.

"We're sorry, we didn't mean to upset you," the reindeer said, shakily, his paws moving non-stop and his fur standing up. He hugged the dark haired boy's leg, obviously bothered by the whole situation.

Marco sighed. "Luffy, c'mon. Ace never shuts up about you. I doubt he has even thought about doing something like that." He extended a hand to pat the younger boy on the head, trying to comfort him, but he was interrupted by Zoro, who had been silent the whole moment.

 _"You touch him and I'll cut your arm off."_ His voice was like steel, violent and sharp and successfully shutting up everyone in the room. He had moved to stand between his friend and the visitors.

"Whoa, calm down, you guys are being really aggressive-"

"I think it's time for you to leave," Nami said, firm. Her tone left no space for discussions. Koala and Marco tried to argue, but Nami quickly pushed them to the door. Zoro followed them, still radiating a dangerous aura.

Luffy turned to Chopper, confused. "I don't know what's happening," he said. He really didn't. He couldn't explain what he was feeling. He wanted to speak but it was like something was constricting his throat, he couldn't breathe well, and a million thoughts rushed through his head. He was so annoyed! He was mad at his friends for insisting in something that wasn't true, and he was mad at Koala and Marco too for not even listening to him, but at the same time he was kind of glad that Zoro and Nami and Chopper stood up for him. Which made no sense, because they were lying in the first place.

God, no wonder Ace and Sabo didn't like him anymore. He was so weak and stupid.

* * *

 **A/N:** Big bro Zoro, big sis Nami and lil bro Chopper to the rescue! People are starting to lose patience.

Koala and Marco didn't mean to gaslight Luffy, they've just known Sabo and Ace for a long time and can't believe that they would do something like that. But they made Luffy question himself if he's imagining things, and not being able to trust your own memories is very upsetting.

Nami is the first one to hit Luffy and scream at him when he's doing stupid things but I think she would be equally aggressive if she knew someone was hurting him.

I couldn't remember if Koala always uses honorifics when talking to Luffy and his friends, and I couldn't find that info online so I just went with it, lol.

 **Answering reviews:**

 **Wordlet:** thank you for your kind review! I'm always happy to read what you have to say, your comments are always so thoughtful. I agree, the mental scars one gets after being abused are hard to deal with. I hope you liked this chapter!

 **The voice of all things:** thank you for your review! The point of this fic is to make people relate to this situation and find comfort in seeing Luffy get help. I hope I'm able to transmit that. I hope you liked this chapter!

 **MelodiofHope** **:** you're getting your wish, haha! Thank you for your review and I hope you liked the chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Sorry for disappearing for so long. My mental health took a turn for the worse after the recent elections in Brazil and our new asshole president.

* * *

Koala's and Marco's words kept playing again in Luffy's head, like a broken tape. Was the idea that Ace hurt him so unbelievable? Or did they simply not care if Luffy got burned? He felt confused, like he couldn't trust himself or his own memories.

He was feeling really weird after that argument, so he decided to leave Nami's house as soon as no one was looking. He didn't want to be near his friends for a while.

He wasn't mad at Nami, Zoro and Chopper for being rude with Marco and Koala. Really, he wasn't. He was just... bothered. Sort of. He understood that they were trying to protect him, and he was glad they cared so much, but for some reason the moment they started getting mad and yelling, Luffy felt nervous. Being there was like being at home with Ace and Sabo, and he really, really didn't want to be near people who would be aggressive and scream.

He felt weak for running away like that, but he told himself he had always been selfish to the point of avoiding things he didn't like and that this was nothing new. He was just acting like he always had. Right?

After walking around the city for a while, Luffy decided to go to Usopp's place.

He was relieved that at least _someone_ wasn't going to bring up _that_ subject again so soon. Usopp bought strawberry ice cream and he told him stories of the brave hero Sogeking and his eight thousand followers; Brook showed up as well, and they sang all sorts of songs and danced and laughed. Luffy even forgot about the bandages in his body.

In the mornings Usopp made them cereal and pancakes; during the afternoon, they'd make tons of popcorn and watch Disney movies together; at night, they played video games and made fun of how bad Brook was at them.

Luffy ignored the texts and calls he received.

It's midnight of the third day he and Brook have been there when Usopp finally touched the subject.

"Luffy," he started, while he sat in the sofa with more popcorn, "I think you know we need to talk. I don't know if you want to do it now, but we can't ignore it forever, man."

Luffy crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, but didn't object.

Brook also joined the conversation, his voice calm. "Why don't you start from the beginning? I'm positive this situation did not happen out of nowhere."

Luffy didn't feel like saying anything at first. What if his friends reacted like Koala and Marco? He didn't want that again. He also didn't want them to get mad. But he wasn't a coward, so he told them as best as he could when Ace and Sabo started acting weird.

Brook was hard to read, considering he didn't have a face. Usopp didn't show any reaction at first, but then he asked, "when Sanji and Robin talked to you, you said it wasn't abuse. Do you still think that now? After everything that happened?"

Luffy tilted his head, thinking. "I dunno. I don't know what it is. I just want them to stop being weird and mean."

Brook took a sip of his tea. "That makes sense. You don't want to get hurt anymore, right?"

"Well, yeah. But Koala and Marco said they would never hurt people like that."

Brook sighed. "Koala-san does not live with you. She can't be aware of the situation with your siblings if she isn't there."

That sick feeling in Luffy's stomach started again, but he tried to keep going. He had to be brave. "Okay, but maybe they didn't realize they were being rude-"

Brook shood his head. "Luffy-san, be reasonable. What they did was beyond rudeness. It was an act with the intent of hurting you."

Luffy felt his hands sweat. Everything suddenly seemed too close to him, like he was trapped. The room felt too small. "But... they never did that before. And they were really stressed, I know they were. I lash out sometimes when I'm angry too."

Usopp stared at him, hard. "Dude, seriously. You can't mean that. You may act dumb but you're not an idiot."

Luffy felt defensive. "Well, excuse me for telling you my opinion!"

Usopp sighed. "Sorry. It's just... why are you protecting them so much? Maybe your brothers are not who you thought they were."

"But everybody says Ace and Sabo are good brothers!" Luffy nearly shouted, angry and confused and frustrated. "They train me and they teach me how to get stronger and they took care of me when no one else did!"

"Living with you isn't a reason to treat you badly." Usopp replied, like he couldn't believe what Luffy just said.

Luffy was mad. They weren't getting the point at all! "I had no one before they showed up! I'm sick and tired of feeling helpless! I don't understand why they're treating me like this now, after all this time together! What did I do wrong?"

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Usopp hugged him so suddenly and tightly that Luffy couldn't help but think it was a good thing that he was made of rubber. A skeletal hand brushed his hair, the action soothing and full of love.

"It's not your fault, Luffy," Usopp mumbled, "don't think that at all. You don't deserve what happened to you. It's not your fault."

Luffy felt tears running down his cheeks but didn't try to wipe them.

He was so _tired_.

* * *

Usopp said Jinbe invited them to eat lunch at his house, so that's where they go.

Luffy had barely opened the door when Chopper jumped on top of him, knocking him down. He was crying and hugging him and Luffy couldn't help but hug back, although he had no idea of what was going on.

"I'm sorry for arguing last time we saw you! I didn't mean to upset you!"

Nami showed up next to them, looking awkward and unsure of what to do with her hands. "I'm sorry too, for reacting like that. I didn't mean to scream at Koala and Marco. This is just... so hard to deal with."

Zoro was next, rubbing his neck and looking him in the eyes. "I'm not sorry for scaring them off, but I didn't want to also scare _you_. My bad, Luffy."

"It's okay," he says. Really, it is. His friends are so awesome that they knew Luffy was bothered without he even had to say anything. He suddenly felt a burst of confidence at facing his problems with such unconditional support.

They all entered the house, and Luffy greeted the rest of his friends. Somehow he was not surprised to find the entire group there. It felt like some sort of intervention.

"Luffy-san," Jinbe started, "are you feeling better? We weren't able to contact you after you left the hospital. How are your wounds?"

"I'm good," Luffy replied, "don't worry about it. It doesn't hurt anymore."

"They said you got burned while cooking. It's not true, is it?" Franky asked, his gaze(?) serious and questioning.

"It isn't," Luffy confirmed.

"It was one of your brothers, wasn't it?" Robin asked. Her face gave nothing away. Luffy remembered how she asked him to tell them if things got worse, and he felt a bit bad for not keeping his word, but he took a deep breath. He was done being a crybaby and a coward. He was going to face this as bravely as he can. No more questioning and overthinking and being sad. "It was Ace. He got mad at me for saying he was being dumb." Saying it out loud felt surreal, like finally confirming it was happening. Somehow not talking about it helped Luffy pretend nothing was going on.

"I think he's ready to talk about it. Right, Luffy-san?" Brook said, his hand rubbing his back in support. Luffy nodded in reply.

"Bro, first we want to make it clear that we want to help you. You can't live like this anymore." Luffy had never seen Franky so serious, but he didn't interrupt. "I don't know if there is, like, a specific police for sibling abuse cases, but this is still a police matter. You should go there. We can go with you."

Luffy stared at him. "I don't wanna do that. Ace and Sabo are being mean, but they are still family."

Franky shook his head. "This isn't a matter of how much they have done for you. They hurt you. They have to suffer the consequences for what they did."

"But they shouldn't go to jail for that," Luffy repeated.

Jinbe stepped forward. "I know this is hard to think about, Luffy-san, but what if they hurt someone else? The next person may not survive an encounter with them. What if Ace and Sabo kill someone?"

Luffy noticed that his friend dropped the -san from Ace's and Sabo's names. A part of him felt happy that Jinbe was on his side and not theirs, even if he met them before he met Luffy. "I just... I just don't think this is the way to go. I don't wanna go to the police."

Robin inclined forward, her voice patient as ever. "Wouldn't you suggest the same if this happened with one of us?"

"Yeah, but- but they're not going to believe me! Koala and Marco didn't either." Luffy closed his eyes, frustrated. He felt Chopper's hooves pat him on the leg, calming him.

"Luffy, I understand what you're saying. Really, I do." Sanji said abruptly. Luffy remembered what Sanji told him about his family, and he felt sad again. "Most people think that two siblings fighting is just common rivalry, but the authorities are trained to identify the signs of abuse. They will know that you're telling the truth."

Luffy scratched his head, thinking. "Yeah, I guess I want Ace and Sabo to be held responsible in some way. But I don't want to involve the police. It's too much. I can't do that to them. I just want them to stop hurting people."

A good number of his friends sighed. Luffy could tell that was not the reply they wanted, but he didn't change his mind. He couldn't do that to his brothers, who had done so much for him. Luffy wouldn't be where he is now if he had not met Ace and Sabo. He owed them, despite everything that happened.

"What if," Zoro starts suddenly, startling everyone with his deep voice, "we talk to Garp? Surely he'd punish them. Or at least talk some sense into them. The three of you have always respected him, right? And the police wouldn't be involved, so they wouldn't be arrested. Everyone wins."

Jinbe looked thoughtful. "That's... actually not a bad idea, Zoro-san. I suppose it's the best option, other than calling the abuse hotline."

"And Garp-san probably knows how to deal with these situations, considering he's in the police. He will probably be able to help us know what's the best action to take," replied Brook.

"Who would have thought the mosshead could think after all," mumbled Sanji. Zoro threw a pillow at him, sneering _I helped more than you_. Sanji gave him the finger.

"Well, Luffy, what do you think?" Nami asked.

Luffy crossed his arms, sighing. He wasn't sure what Gramps would do, but he supposed it was easier than going to the police. "Okay, fine. But just because you guys want it."

* * *

Garp's first reaction is to laugh, and that hurt Luffy more than anything else. It was Koala and Marco and questioning himself all over again.

But then he noticed that it wasn't a happy laughter. Or a mocking one. It sounded sad, like Garp was laughing out of despair. Luffy felt even worse, because that couldn't mean anything good.

They're in Gramp's apartment, Luffy and his friends - they all refused to let Luffy alone with another family member. Garp was at first really confused at so many sudden guests.

"You know," Garp said, "I used to wonder a lot about when Ace would warm up to you. He was always so angry at his parents for dying, and he never let people get too close. But after he and Sabo started calling you little brother and protecting you from my fist of love, I stopped wondering completely." He was looking at the ceiling, and he had a baffled look on his face, like he couldn't believe what he had just heard. Luffy shifted on his chair, uncomfortable. He didn't know what he would do if Gramps thought he was lying.

"I believe you," Garp said next, as if reading Luffy's thoughts. "You'd never lie about this. You can't lie at all anyway."

Luffy was _so_ relieved to hear that. "So, what do we do? I guess I should move out?"

"Well, yes. But I think there's more into this than we know. Don't get me wrong - I know you're telling the truth. But I also know Ace and Sabo. They'd never do this. Not without a good reason." Luffy supposed that was fair. He never thought his brothers would go that far, either. "I want to talk to them. Face to face. And I want you there, too."

"I don't think it's a good idea to let Luffy near them so soon, Garp-san," Jinbe interrupted.

"Don't worry. I won't let them do anything to Luffy. I just need to hear from their mouths what's going on in order to know how to punish them." He turned to Luffy, serious. "I'll text them to meet us in one hour."

* * *

Luffy found himself in front of the door to his apartment. He hand't been there in days. He wondered what would Ace and Sabo say. Would they deny the whole thing? Would they say Luffy was exaggerating? Or would they laugh and make fun of Luffy for being weak? His heart was beating fast, but he tried to think about what Chopper had said about staying calm in stressful situations - _keep breathing, think positive things, don't dwell too much on imaginary scenarios._

Gramps knocked, and almost immediately Ace opened the door. Without a word, Ace let the two of them enter the place. Sabo was sitting on the sofa, looking at them with soft eyes.

Weird.

"I think you know why I'm here," Garp said, without hesitating. Sabo nodded. Ace gesticulated with his hand for them to seat, and he offered some tea.

"So, start explaining," Garp said, while taking a sip of his drink, "and you better not lie. I'm not feeling very patient today."

"I'm very sorry, Luffy!" Ace bursted out suddenly. He bowed deeply, regret clear in his whole body. "I'm just- I'm not having a good month, I got dumped and Pops isn't satisfied with my work and-"

"Cut the bullshit, Ace. You've been stressing over whether Whitebeard would be happy with your performance since you were hired. What changed?"

"I- this month several companies stopped doing business with us, so everyone's very stressed..."

Garp didn't look convinced. He opened his mouth to reply.

Except that suddenly he fell from his seat, hitting the floor so loudly that Luffy jumped in surprise.

"This was so easy that I'm a bit surprised," Ace said. He dropped the apologetic posture completely, looking like he was about to laugh now. "I didn't think you would be so dumb to drink whatever we threw at you."

Garp's fists were closed, and he looked ready to punch a hole in the floor. "What- what the hell did you do to me-"

"A cool new drink that we bought in the black market. Nice, isn't it? It copies seastone effect, except that it makes everyone feel exhausted and weak, regardless of having powers or not." Ace walked over to Garp, smiling. "They say Doflamingo killed lots of people while trying to perfect the formula. I wonder if it is as terrible as they say? You'll have to tell me later, _Gramps_ ," he said the name ironically, like it disgusted him.

Luffy barely felt it when he blacked out.

* * *

When Luffy woke up, he was shaking.

His hands were tied behind his torso, and he couldn't stand up. He couldn't see anything, and the unknown made him shiver with fear of what would happen.

Suddenly his arm was grabbed, and he was conducted to another room. He felt someone remove the cloth from his eyes, and he found himself in a small, dark room, that smelled like it had been closed for months. In front of him, he could see Sabo and Ace.

"What are you doing?" Luffy hisses, and although he's trying to sound brave, it comes out nothing like it.

Luffy is tired. He's tired of being afraid of his brothers, he's tired of running away, he's tired of feeling _powerless_.

"Being alone is worse than being dead, right? Didn't you say that the day we met? You should have thought better about your actions, _Lu_. Sabo grinned, his eyes shining, his bare teeth giving him a maniac look. He turned to leave the room.

"Sabo, please, I don't know what I did but I'm sorry-"

"Oh? Then you'll have a lot of time to think about your mistakes, right, _little brother_?"

Luffy felt fear creep up at his stomach, slowly, until it was dominating his entire body. He listened to Ace's mocking laughter while they closed the door, leaving him in absolute darkness.

* * *

 **A/N:** Oops.

I promise the ASL comfort is coming.

(one day)

I apologize to those who wanted Ace and Sabo to be legally punished, but I honestly can't see Luffy seeking the police's help. He never showed any indication of seeking the marines' involvement in canon, as far as I can remember. Luffy is more of a "I gotta deal with this myself" kind of guy.

However, if you are involved or know of any abuse cases in real life, please do not act like Luffy - you need to seek specialized help, preferably from a police department that deals with abuse. Luffy's situation is very sad, but he has specific reasons to seek other methods besides the police, as mentioned above. In real cases, the best solution is specialized help instead of dealing with the abuser yourself.

 **Answering reviews:**

 **Wordlet** \- you are right and I was wondering if people would pick up on that or not! Like I tried to show in this chapter, Luffy is bothered after Nami, Zoro and Chopper argued with Koala and Marco, although he doesn't understand why exactly he's bothered by that. It's also why he decided to seek the less "aggressive" friends (like Usopp and Brook). I'm glad you were able to notice that detail! Hope you liked this chapter!

 **The voice of all things** \- thank you for the review! Yeah, I believe that the Strawhats would not tolerate anyone hurting one of their group. I hope you liked this chapter!

 **yankey** \- hola! Yo no hablo español, entonces espero que todo bien hablar inglés! Yes, Luffy seriously needs helps, and I tried to show in this chapter how much support he gets from his friends. I will try to show lots of comfort next chapter! ASL deserves all the sweetness after this sad chapter. Thank you for the review and I hope you liked this update!

 **Like A Pro 42** \- that was actually what I had in mind when I started writing this, haha. It was supposed to be just an one-shot of some angst and hurt/comfort, but it started getting kinda long and whenever I tried removing something, the fic felt incomplete. So multi-chapter fic it is lol. Thank you for the review and I hope you liked this chapter!

 **MelodiofHope -** I'm still unsure if I'll let Marco and Koala help them. And I agree, the SHs are all very protective of each other. Thank you for the review and I hope you liked this chapter!

 **Anano Jinseite** \- thank you for the compliment! It took me a while but I updated it, haha. I hope you liked this chapter! Only one more to go!


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